The Life and Microgravity Spacelab Mission (LMS), a culmination of extensive efforts by an international team of scientists, engineers and support personnel, flew aboard Space Shuttle Columbia during STS-78. Canadian astronaut Bob Thirsk, on his first space flight, participated in the diverse slate of life and microgravity experiments, a total of 41 in all, conducted in the near-weightless environment of the LMS.

Canadian contribution to this suite of experiments included the Torso Rotation Experiment (TRE), led by McGill University in Montreal and sponsored by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). Its findings helped to contribute to the search for a cure for motion sickness and morning sickness in pregnancy.

The short-term, shuttle-based research in the LMS was a pivotal step towards the long-term science now being conducted on the International Space Station (ISS).